Happy Birthday Shenzi
by TheGreat628
Summary: It's Shenzi's birthday and  no one seems to remember. Not to mention, Banzai has been dragging them through the desert all day and won't even tell them where they're going. What happens? Read to find out! ShenziXBanzai


Three hyenas slowly trudged along in the Serengeti. It was hot, it was dry and worst of all it was horribly tiring.

"For the last time Banzai where are we going?" asked an impatient Shenzi.

"Just a little bit farther…" replied Banzai.

The trio had been walking through the boiling desert for the entire day. All three were exhausted, hungry and tired. Even Ed who had always seemed to be full of neverending energy was starting to slow down. The three continued on their seemingly endless journey.

They had left the Elephant Graveyard that morning when Banzai told them that he had planned

something special for today. What he DIDN'T tell them was how long it would take them to get there. They had spent the past 10 hours walking through the desert with no food (which was nothing new to them) and even less water.

_Worst birthday ever…_ Shenzi silently thought to herself as they moved through the searing sunshine. No one, not even her best friends had even so much as acknowledged that today was her birthday and now here they were, in the middle of nowhere, starving and near dehydration.

"Uh-oh" She heard Banzai whisper ahead, which snapped her out of her thoughts. She looked up to see what looked like a black mountain in the sky._ Stormclouds _she thought. Though they were rare, storms in the desert were often violent and almost impossible to travel through, much less if you were as exhausted as they were. The trio stopped for a moment to rest.

"Well thats perfect! Just what we need! A Thunderstorm! What else can go wrong?" she cried out in frustration. As if to answer her, the black cloud let out a huge booming thunderclap, causing her to jump.

"If we wanna make it in time, then we better get moving." said Banzai as he scratched the back of his ear with his lower leg.

"Oh no. I am _not_ moving any further until you tell me where we're headed" said a clearly annoyed Shenzi.

"C'mon Shenz we're not that much farther, just about a half hour longer." replied Banzai, calling her by her nickname from puphood

"You said that half an hour ago!" she cried out. But before she could continue, she noticed that their trio had suddenly become a duo. "Hey...wheres Ed?" she asked, concern in her voice.

Both turned around to see an exhausted Ed slowly walking behind them. Once he caught up with his friends again he collapsed to the ground.

"We've been walking in the burning sun all day and you haven't even given us a clue as to where we're headed!" she continued "We left the entire clan behind just so you can drag us through some stupid neverending desert!"

"Just a little bit longer and we'll be there" said Banzai, repeating the same thing he had said all day.

"I'm goin home! Whatever it is it _can't _be worth all this!" Shenzi said as she turned around to go in the direction they had come from.

"Wait! You can't go!" cried out Banzai. "We're almost there!"

Turning around to see her friends face, she saw him looking at her with a familiar sadness in his eyes. When they were pups he had always used that face to convince her to do something and it usually worked. Rolling her eyes she turned back and walked back up to her friends.

"Lets go" she sighed, blowing a bang out of her eyes.

_ A few minutes later..._

As they struggled through the storm the rain pelted their backs and the wind whistled as it blew through their fur. Shenzi shivered. What could be so important to Banzai that it was worth risking a walk through a thunderstorm?

_Next year _she thought_ I'll just stay home for my birthday_.

She was distracted from her thoughts when she saw something in the sky. It looked like...lights? No it couldn't be...not out here in the middle of nowhere. But there they were...spotlights. Waving back and forth in the dark night they were the first things that grabbed your attention. Through the constant downpour of rain she was barely able to make out the silhouette of the place known as Toontown. As they got closer she began to notice the building where the spotlights had come from. There it was...one of her favorite places in the world. A large building that had a theater like feel to it with a sign above it reading "The House of Mouse" sat at the edge of the border of Toontown and the desert.

They finally made it to Toontown and sat on the opposite side of the street, gazing at the impressive looking dinner-theater. Her mouth agape and her eyes wide, she finally turned to look at her friend. Banzai looked back at her with a nervous smile.

"Happy birthda-" he started out before he was suddenly cut off as Shenzi nearly squeezed him to death in a very happy embrace.

She hadn't been here since she was a very young pup when her mother had taken her here for her first birthday. She remembered it as though it were just last week.

Though she was the matriarch of the Elephant Graveyards and had spent most of her time with Shenzi training her to become the next leader, she had felt that her daughters first birthday needed to be special. And special it was. All the fun and color around her was such a contrast to the dull and dead feeling that came with living in the Elephant Graveyard. When the time had come for the two of them to leave, the little pup didn't want to go. Dont take me back to that awful place, she cried. She wanted to stay here, where there was nonstop fun and constant entertainment. It eventually came to the point where her mother had to pick her up by the scruff of her neck and carry her halfway back to the Graveyards.

And now, here she was, sitting in front of the place that held one of her most cherished puphood memories. She let go of Banzai, keeping her paws on his shoulders and looking him in the eye with a huge smile on her face.

"Thank you..." she whispered.

"Well when you told me your birthday was coming up I kinda wanted to do something different this year. That's when I remembered when you told us how much you loved it here when you came as a pup. So I had to call in a few favors with some friends and pull a few strings and managed to get us a reservation here." he meekly replied. He added "Do you like it?"

"I love it" she said and she hugged him again.

The trio turned to cross the road and after what seemed like an eternity to Shenzi, reached the front desk of the restaurant where a familiar looking duck was talking on the phone. Banzai approached the desk and jumped up to put his front paws on the hardwood surface.

"Ahem" he said.

The duck turned to look at him and after concluding her conversation on the phone pulled out a rather heavy looking book and opened it.

"Name?" she asked in a busy yet friendly tone.

"Banzai party of three" he replied.

"Oh yes the one who had a special request about the-" she began only to have her mouth covered by his paw.

"Yes thats me." he said, cutting off whatever it was she had to say.

"Yes well, your table is ready now." her voice came, muffled through his paw.

After she said this, a penguin wearing what looked like a tuxedo came and showed them to a round table with a booth on one side and a chair with mouse ears on the other.

Taking the seat next to Shenzi on the booth, Banzai noticed that she had not stopped smiling since they had walked in the door. Ed sat down in front of them in the chair with the Mickey ears on it.

Banzai looked around and saw the large amount of activity going on around them. Penguins were showing others to their seats and other people were already sitting and talking to each other about things that he didn't care to know about. Over in the corner he saw a very ugly looking hunchbacked man sitting with a very beautiful woman who looked in every way possible to be his physical opposite. In the other corner he noticed a very muscular man in a red shirt wiping off his rather impressive looking elephant gun. At the table in front of them he saw a huge gray bear carrying a skinny boy wearing almost nothing, save for a small loincloth around his waist, on his shoulders. And sitting in the table next to them was a funny looking man with a very large top hat constantly refilling his tea cup and chatting about nothing in particular with an equally funny looking hare. Finally pulling himself away from all of this he turned to look at Shenzi, who had a face that made her look happier than the most energetic hyena pup ever born. He smiled at the thought of his best friend (and secret crush) being so happy after such a long day. A penguin came up and asked them for their drink of choice, to which Banzai said.

"Just the clearest, cleanest water you have!" Having only drank the filthy and sometimes contaminated water from the Graveyards. Banzai was _not _ about to lose the chance to be able to drink something that he didn't have to sniff before he drank it.

Finally after everyone had taken their seats and settled down, a very familiar face walked out on stage. Mickey Mouse went up to the mic.

"Hi there everyone!" he said in a cheerful voice "Welcome to the House of Mouse! Tonight we have some special clips for you and there might be some surprises along the way! Lets not waste anymore time and get into the first one!"

As the lights dimmed and the clip started, the penguin who had seated them came up and handed them their menus. Without even looking Shenzi had already made up her mind about what she wanted.

"Zebra! Big, juicy and tender!" she said without hesitation. She could feel her mouth watering as she made her order. It was the same dish her mother had ordered for her so long ago. She had never forgotten how well cooked and delicious it was. After scribbling that down the penguin next turned to Banzai who chose the same thing and then turned to Ed, who just laughed with his tongue lolling out. Confused, the penguin turned to Banzai who said that he would be having the same thing as Shenzi and him.

After the clip had ended and the lights came back on the penguin returned carrying three water bowls filled to the brim. Although a bit uneasy about having to drink from a bowl while everyone else drank from a glass (or a teacup like the strange man next to them) Banzai decided that the water was just too clear for him to see it go once it was placed in front of him. Reaching his head down and taking his first lap Banzai almost jumped at how cool, refreshing and much better tasting it was than the tiny puddles he was forced to live on at the Graveyards. Finally, Mickey Mouse came back out on stage.

" And now on to our next clip! This next one is an oldie but a classic and features my best friend Donald! Its from World War Two and if you haven't guessed it by now may I present to you 'In Der Fuehrer's Face'!"

It was then that the penguin came back carrying a platter with the most delicious thing that the trio had ever laid eyes on. On their plates was a hunk of zebra meat, not just any hunk though, this was the part that almost all the hyenas in their clan would fight over to get at, the haunches, coated in a freshly made sauce and sprinkled with glaze and cooked to complete perfection.

Their mouths watered for a second before digging in. While Banzai and Ed had never in their entire lives experienced such a good taste and were busy wolfing it down, Shenzi slowly savored each bite, remembering the night when she was last here. She looked over her shoulder and up to the balcony to see the seat where she and her mother had sat years ago and smiled. She turned to drink some water from the bowl.

Again Mickey Mouse came back on stage and greeted his audience once again.

"Okay everyone! Now its time for a change of pace!"

Knowing that his own little birthday surprise for Shenzi was coming up, Banzai pulled his head up and looked at the stage.

This next one is a special request from Banzai for his friend-" He paused to look at the card in his hand "Shenzi Marie Predatora Valdetta Jaquelina Hyena's Birthday! And a very happy birthday to you Miss Shenzi, from all of us here at the House of Mouse!"

For the third time, the lights dimmed and Shenzi's head shot up from her water bowl, splashing some onto the tablecloth, her mouth still dripping water. Had Mickey Mouse just said that? What did he mean by "special request"? Her mouth agape, she turned to Banzai who looked at her with a smile as the lights went out. She turned to the screen and what she saw almost made her squeal with excitement.

On the screen, accompanied by a familiar bell jingle, was a title card that read "The Laughing Hyenas: Big Top Breakfast" with a picture of a cereal bowl and box that had their heads painted on it. She turned again to Banzai.

"You didn't..." she said, her eyes wide as a pup's.

Banzai only smiled in response as the episode of Timon and Pumbaa that featured them as the stars began to play. He had made sure to venture to the "House of Mouse" three weeks before this occasion and put in a special request for this to be shown. As the clip went on and the audience constantly laughed at the trio's antics on screen, Banzai suddenly felt Shenzi's head nuzzling into his shoulder. He looked down to see her smiling up at him and put his paw on top of hers. When the clip ended and the lights came back on, the audience cheered and even gave a standing ovation in response to the clip. Being somewhat embarrassed at the thought of being seen in a position like they were in, the two hyenas quickly pulled away from each other.

For the fourth time that night Mickey Mouse came up on stage.

"And now Miss Shenzi, from all of us here at the 'House of Mouse' we would like to wish you a happy birthday in our own special way. Boys?"

A group of three penguins came out pushing a cart holding a cake that was the size of the funny man's hat with candles on it. As they pulled it up to their table, Shenzi heard Mickey begin to sing "Happy Birthday to you...Happy Birthday to you..."

It wasn't long before the entire crowd began to sing along with him.

"Happy Birthday dear Shenzi...Happy Birthday...Toooo...youuuuuu!"

The audience began to applaud and cheer.

After they had finished she took in a deep breath and blew out the candles one by one, to which the audience clapped again. She finally took a bite out of the cake, which was one of the best tasting things she had ever eaten. Remembering she was not sitting alone, she used her claw to carefully ( yet sloppily) cut the cake into three shares which she shared with her friends.

They were too busy wolfing down their treat to hear Mickey announce the name of the next clip and by the time they had finished the clip was nearly over. Looking up at the screen to see Goofy and his son running about the house trying to pack for a vacation, Banzai grew bored and began to lick the excess cake and icing off his muzzle. When he was done he looked back at the screen. Goofy and Max had just jumped into the car when he heard Shenzi whisper into his ear,

"You missed a spot"

Intantly he began to feel his muzzle with his paws before turning to her and asking,

"Where?"

"Here..." she whispered back as she leaned in and licked him on his cheek. Banzai felt his face turn red as she continued.

"And here..." she began to lick his other cheek. "And a big one right...here..." she leaned in and kissed him straight on the mouth. Banzai was stunned but finally closed his eyes and began to kiss her back, when he heard Ed start to giggle in front of them. They both opened their eyes to look at him and his giggle turned into a laugh as he watched the two pull away from each other as quickly as possible before being shushed by the man in the red shirt. As soon as he turned away, Shenzi once again leaned on Banzai' and nuzzled his neck. Putting her paw on his they continued to watch the clip playing on the big screen.

"Happy Birthday Shenzi" he whispered into her ear and she leaned in and kissed him on the cheek one last time.

"Thanks..." she whispered back.

_Best birthday ever..._ she thought to herself as they continued to cuddle...


End file.
